Anyone who has ever been to SEP under the auspices of the Worldwide Church of God, regardless of where it was held, usually found it to be a fun time, Sure, for some, it was tough being away from home for the first time, but the experience tended to be fun.
Ever since the implosion of the church summer camp has continued on in various splinter groups. Most have them today except for the little personality cults like the improperly named "continuing" Church of "god" and Ron Wienland's geriatric group.
Anyway, the boys in Edmond posted a story on their site about the upcoming summer camps. These are the three things that campers are expected to do:
1. Prepare now for your prayer life at camp.
At S.E.P., you will hear a lot about sharpening your prayer life. More than likely, you will hear about prayer notebooks, and be given lists outlining basic subjects to pray about in your life and in the Work of God. Prepare now to refine the quality and length of your prayers before, during and after camp! Pray now that the pyc experience takes your prayer life to even greater heights!
Do you struggle with stirring up the motivation to pray? We can all struggle with that at times. I am reminded of a statement I heard from Evangelist Alex Harrison in a sermon several years ago. “Don’t feel like praying?” he said. “Tell that to God! Ask Him for the desire to pray.” Pray that God would give you that desire to pray to him now as well as during S.E.P.! Let God know if you are struggling in this area. He is not intending to beat you down. Show Him you want His assistance, and He will help you!
Set specific goals now for your prayer life at S.E.P.—goals for length in prayer, goals for focused quality of prayer. There are so many different facets of S.E.P. that you can be praying about now so camp this year can go that much more smoothly.
Prayer was always encouraged at SEP and the Orr camp had prayer closets in each dorm. Campers on Friday nights usually had a Bible study in the dorm going over some weird WCG booklet, but, this was not the main focus of the camper's time at camp. It was building friendships and discovering new things you might never get to do when at home. Imagine being a 12-year-old and having to focus on the length of prayer and the supposed "quality". The past church teaching of one-hour prayers was a load of crap. No member ever did that successfully, especially the ministry. One of the best prayers ascending to God's ears is a single word like "Help!"
2. Prepare to spend time with the ministry.
God’s ministers are a key part of His Family; they help edify and unite that Family (Ephesians 4:11-16). Don’t let a day go by without making some contact with a minister. This will be a unique opportunity for you at S.E.P.: to be surrounded by so many ministers. Most Church members never get to have that. So take advantage of it!
What should you talk about? Tell them about your life back at home, your congregation, what you are looking forward to the most at S.E.P., and what your goals are in life. They would love to talk to you—if you overcome any barriers and give them the time.
This is even more odious for campers to deal with. Too many stories are floating around out there about PCG ministers being abusive pieces of crap toward the youth of the church. The ones about PCG ministers in Edmond forcing campers to run in 100% humidity to some passed out and then forcing them to get up and run some more. No child heading off to summer camp expects to sit in front of some dickwad and have to squeal about life back home. This is what the Chinese Communists do to their children. Turn your parents in for not following the program.
Also, what 12, 14, and 16-year-old really has their life planned out as to what their goals are in life. Just surviving 2-3 weeks with COG Gestopa agents on their ass is their #1 goal.
3. Prepare to forge strong friendships.
Camp can be nerve-wracking for some—coming from far distances to a strange land, meeting unfamiliar people. But we are all tied together by a common mind and goal! Camp director Wayne Turgeon said the pycmindset is about leaving “problems, fears, worries, concerns behind and really embracing God’s way of selflessness, outgoing, flowing, giving, concern and sacrifice for three weeks.” So forget yourself, and be outgoing to your fellow brothers and sisters at S.E.P. A lot of campers may not have many, if any, friends their age in their congregation. Plan to build friendships that will last longer than camp itself, and then keep in contact with those who do not have close friends their age in their area. Plan to use this S.E.P. to sharpen the iron of your friendships (Proverbs 27:17).
Come to S.E.P. to have fun. Come to try your best at every single activity. Come to pull yourself out of your comfort zone and try new things. But come chiefly with a mindset of building the Family of God. Come with a mindset to get to know the ministry, and to get to know your fellow brothers and sisters that much better.
Seriously, dude? Seriously? Come with a mindset of building the family of God? When their own ministers and local church members are some of the nastiest people on earth why would anyone want to come to camp to expand that kind of family? God certainly is NOT part of the program.
Many who have attended previous camps say that S.E.P changed their lives. It can change yours too! Many Armstrong College students will tell you that the main thing that motivated them to apply for college was S.E.P. That’s true for me as well. Seeing God’s way of life put to practice here for those few fantastic weeks as a camper was more than enough to persuade me to apply for God’s college. Seeing the Family of God being built at camp is an awe-inspiring sight. But that building begins now—before camp even begins. So prepare now to do your part in building the Family of God at camp, and I guarantee you, you will have the best S.E.P. ever!
May God have mercy on these poor children's souls!